Let pictures and photos tell historical stories.

History seen from pictures

These days, Dong A Cultural Company is completing the final stages to introduce the publication Ho Chi Minh - A pictorial biography in time for the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution and National Day September 2 (1945-2025). The book consists of 7 parts, telling the entire life of President Ho Chi Minh - from his childhood, his journey to find a way to save the country, his revolutionary activities, to his political career and legacy.

The exchange program introducing the Vietnamese-Japanese bilingual edition of the illustrated history of Vietnam organized by Kim Dong Publishing House. Photo: PHUNG HA

The book has more than 500 visually illustrated pictures and maps, including many rare original photo documents, collected from the Aix-en-Provence Archives Center (France) and a number of domestic museums. Previously, Dong A had produced an elaborate and valuable publication called Vietnamese History in Pictures (University of Education Publishing House), with a rich and diverse photo archive of artifacts according to each historical period, collected from nearly 50 domestic and foreign museums, as well as from private collections. Monuments, pagodas, temples, and statues associated with the names of famous historical figures are also present in the book in the form of photos, illustrating the language more vividly. The entire book has nearly 2,000 pictures and maps.

During the 50th anniversary of the Liberation of the South and National Reunification, there were 3 publications that received the attention and love of readers: Reading the History of Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City in One Breath (Tam Books and Ho Chi Minh City General Publishing House) compiled by Dr. Huynh Ba Loc, illustrated by Diep Xuong Vi, photographed by Minh Hoa; Following the Steps of Time (Kim Dong Publishing House) compiled by Vo Thi Mai Chi, illustrated by Ho Quoc Cuong and Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City Heritage (Ho Chi Minh City General Publishing House) edited by journalist Nguyen Hanh. The publications have attempted to depict a relatively long historical flow of Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City through events, characters, places, etc.

Bridge of history and culture

Read in One Go is the name of the book series organized by Tam Books, aiming to bring readers a comprehensive, easy-to-grasp perspective on the characteristics and changes of a land, a community, a specific field... After Read in One Go History of Saigon - Ho Chi Minh City, this year, this unit will bring readers 2 publications, one in English with the title Read In One Go - All about Vietnam and Read in One Go Vietnamese Cuisine. These two publications continue to use pictures to tell stories, conveying basic knowledge about the history, culture and people of Vietnam.

Mr. Nguyen Thuan Thanh, Director of Tam Books, said: “From observing the market, we have seen that many large units have made books about culture and history. However, these works are too massive, making young families and people of the Gen Z and Alpha generations hesitant to approach. That is why we decided to do it in a simplified way through pictures and images to suit the target audience of young families and Vietnamese people abroad.”

In parallel with publishing books, Tam Books will also produce derivative products to bring historical and cultural stories into the lives of consumers more widely. In particular, one of the important goals of this unit is to publish to the international market. That is the reason why Tam Books produces versions entirely in English, the first of which will be Read In One Go - All about Vietnam. "The reality is that for many years, we have mainly produced books for Vietnamese people to read. Meanwhile, the demand for reading books about culture, people, places... of tourists is very large," Mr. Thanh shared.

The goal that Tam Books is aiming for is probably no longer a fantasy, because in fact, a publication previously launched by Kim Dong Publishing House, A Brief History of Vietnam in Pictures, has become proof of this. This is the first panorama picture book publication about the country's history for children, recreating important events and milestones in Vietnamese history, from the Hong Bang era to the present day. After 14 years, the book has published more than 200,000 copies, in addition to the Vietnamese version, there is also a bilingual Vietnamese - English version, a monolingual Korean version. Recently, the book has added a bilingual Vietnamese - Japanese version aimed at Vietnamese children living in Japan, as well as the Japanese-speaking reader community at home and abroad.

HO SON

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/de-tranh-anh-ke-nhung-cau-chuyen-lich-su-post803160.html